Voters must select two players but are allowed to select up to three, allocating a total of 10 points among them. For example, voters can give the player they feel strongest for eight points and give another two.

Mike Sexton was the lone inductee to the 2009 class. Two players will gain entry this year. Here are my selections:

Erik Seidel (6 points): It wouldn't be a stretch to call Seidel, 50, the greatest tournament poker player alive. The winner of eight World Series of Poker bracelets and a World Poker Tour event, Seidel has accumulated more than $10 million in tournament winnings.

According to the Hendon Mob Database — an online site that tracks tournament poker results — Seidel is credited with 24 cashes in excess of $100,000 since 1988.

Much of his poker fame is rooted in his knack for finishing second.

The hand where Seidel lost the 1988 Main Event to Johnny Chan provided a backdrop to the 1998 movie “Rounders.” He also finished second in the 2010 NBA National Heads-Up Poker Championship.

Tom McEvoy (3): When he won the 1983 Main Event, McEvoy became the first champion to qualify for the tournament via satellite and went on to accumulate nearly $3 million in winnings.

However, his biggest impact on poker lies as one of the premier teachers of the game. McEvoy, 65, has authored over a dozen titles and teamed with T.J. Cloutier (already in the Hall) to create one of the true masterpieces in “Championship No-Limit and Pot-Limit Hold 'Em.” He's also a major reason Las Vegas poker rooms are non-smoking.

Scotty Nguyen (1): He has dealt with bad publicity since his embarrassing, alcohol-fueled 2008 H.O.R.S.E Championship march caught by ESPN cameras, but the “Prince of Poker” has the credentials to be in Seidel's class with more than $10 million in tournament winnings.

I have no mandate that poker players have to be role models. Nguyen, 47, is probably a long shot this year, but he'll get in eventually. To steal a line from the Vietnamese native — “You can put it in the bank babeeeeeeeeeee!”

So what kind of idiot doesn't vote for Ivey or Negreanu? The two rank 1-2 in the all-time winnings list, and Ivey is probably the best player alive.

I simply cannot select anybody below 40 to a Hall of Fame that rewards lifetime achievement. With Ivey (34) and Negreanu (36), their time will come.

Got a poker question or comment? E-mail Chuck at cblount@express-news.net.